Something Wonderful Happens in Summer
by nannygirl
Summary: It's summer of 1977, there's a heatwave in Point Place, and Red's corvette is in need of a wash. Pure summer fluff, please be kind.


_**Disclaimer:**_ _I own nothing. I do not own That '70s Show or any of it's characters. I own nothing!_

 _ **Author's Note:**_ _Hello all! Hope you've been having a wonderful summer, I'm getting ready to finish mine but before I do I wanted to post this summer oneshot I had been wanting to write and share with you all summer long. Finally finished typing and editing it the other day, I hope you like it. It's pure fluff and may not be everyone's cup of tea but I personally needed some fun summer fluff with my favorite pairings and so came this story. Takes place between Season 4 and 5, yes in that summer. Hope you like! Thanks for stopping by to read, hope you like, please review if you can, and as always, please, Enjoy!_

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 **Something Wonderful Happens in Summer**

 _July 17, 1977_

When Red had first announced that he would be spending the afternoon washing his corvette, Kitty instantly volunteered to help him. She thought the activity would not only be fun but might also be a nice way to beat the summer heatwave that had invaded Point Place for the past week. And the car wash had the great bonus of getting to spend some quality time with her husband.

Red didn't even try to talk her out of it, he was looking forward to her joining him and that made Kitty's heart soar. This was going to be so much fun, she was sure of it!

However, after the half hour lecture from Red over the special instructions on how exactly they'd be cleaning the corvette—because apparently the car was too good for just some soapy water and an old sponge—Kitty barely had an one once of excitement left for the activity.

As Red continued on and on about the supplies they'd be using, Kitty had already tuned him out and was trying to come up with a new plan that would meet both her and Red's expectations.

"Red, couldn't we just take the car to one of those automatic drive thru car washes?" she suggested absentmindedly twisting the water hose they'd be using to wash the vehicle in her hands.

Kitty did not sound too convincing in her suggestion, but she'd lost her excitement for the whole carwash thing, that is until she remembered a detail that made her eyes light up. "Oh, oh! They have one in Kenosha! We could drive up there, get the car washed up, and stop for some of those old-fashioned milkshakes on the way home."

She was giddy just thinking about her plan but one look at her husband's face and Kitty knew he wasn't on board.

"Automatic drive thru car wash, are you out of your mind?" he asked, sounding like he really thought she had gone mad. "Those damn death tunnels scratch the paint off in a way that you can't see it, but you know it's happened."

Now it was Kitty's turn to look at her spouse like he'd gone off his rocker.

He seemed to catch her look but merely ignored it, tucking his chin to his chest and stepping towards her. "And you know what they use to wash the cars and get them lookin' all bright and shiny?"

"Soap," she guessed, blinking her eyes several times.

"No," Red smirked at her smart-alecky reply. "They use acid."

Kitty's shoulders drooped. "Red, I don't think they use _acid_ to clean the cars…"

"Well, I know they do!" he interrupted her with his declaration.

Then as Red shook his head back and forth, he grabbed a red rag off the edge of the plastic water bucket he'd filled up earlier and set out on the driveway with the rest of the car cleaning products he planned on using.

"No, no, no, my corvette is American made and it's gonna be cleaned with some good ol' American elbow grease," Red kneeled down on one knee and began to firmly, yet still tenderly, rub the silver front grill of the vehicle. "My baby's not going anywhere near one of those foreign contraptions."

His use of the word 'baby' made Kitty roll her eyes. "Red, _it's a car._ "

As if a pause button had been pressed, Red's rubbing actions on the grill froze and he slowly turned his head to look at Kitty. The expression he wore, wasn't as angry as she'd expected, he actually looked more hurt than anything. It briefly made Kitty wonder if up until now, her husband hadn't realized this really was just a car, but as he rose to his feet a more stern kind of look crossed his face.

"This is more than a car, Kitty," he began to explain. "When I was in Korea, after a hard day of battle when I felt like I was living out my last days in that hell, I reminded myself of the fact that as soon as the war was over, and I got back home, I'd jump into one of these beauties and drive across the country without a care in the world."

Kitty watched him run his palm over the hood of the car, grinning grandly like he was lost in the memories and future plans from his glory days.

Red looked back at her, his large smile shifting into his more natural smirk. "I'll tell you, Kitty, this baby is what got me through Korea and home in one piece."

Hearing this, Kitty couldn't help pouting a bit as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "I thought I was what got you through the war and back home in one piece."

"You were," he quickly assured. "Every time I thought about driving around in that corvette I imagined you right there with me in the passenger's seat."

A smile flickered onto Kitty's lips. It sounded like a much better dream once she knew she was a part of it.

"But you have to remember Kitty, I got you as soon as I got back to the states," Red went on with this reminder. "I had to wait twenty-three years to get this corvette." His voice and face fell into a deadpan form, "Twenty-three long years."

The smile that Kitty had worn had transformed into a straight line. "You mean the same twenty-three years you've spent married to me?"

It looked like Red had quickly realized his mistake, he'd opened his mouth to respond but Kitty wasn't in the mood to hear anything he bothered to come up with.

"Honestly, Red Forman, sometimes I think that you love that darn car more than you love me!" her shoulders rose with her voice and her head rattled with her emotions.

"Oh Kitty, don't be ridiculous. I don't love my corvette more than I love you," said Red, and the soft tone he used almost convinced Kitty that she may have been acting a bit silly. "I might love it as much as I love you but not _more_ _than_."

He'd almost had her. Almost. So much so that Kitty wasn't sure if she was more upset at herself for falling for it or at Red for having said the words.

She watched him crouch back down in front of the car, continuing with his polishing of the silver grill bars, and that was when Kitty figured out how she could get back at her husband. He was so consumed with his scrubbing and she was still holding the garden hose in her hands, the idea only seemed logical.

Without a second thought, or twinge of guilt, Kitty held down the nozzle attached to the end of the hose, sending a spray of water onto Red's back.

"Kitty!" he roared, jumping to his feet. "What the hell?!"

Kitty didn't flinch and instead feigned innocence. "Oops."

Red was fuming as he glared down at her. "Damn it, Kitty, what I said was a joke. You should've known it was a joke."

"Well, maybe what I did was an accident and _you_ should have known it was an accident," she replied with a casual shrug of her shoulders.

Like an angered bull, he blew out an angry puff of air from his nostrils. Kitty knew though, that no matter how bullish her husband acted, he would never charge at her; and she was even less surprised when she saw him ready to return to his task of cleaning his vehicle.

"Look, you can't mess around like that," he said in a tone that reminded Kitty of one he used when speaking to their son. She resisted rolling her eyes, even though his back once again turned towards her. "Hard water spots are tougher to get out than any mud or bird crap. You've gotta watch where you point that thing."

"Okay, well, is this spot okay?" she asked before spraying the hose again aiming it right at Red's butt.

"Alright, now you're just asking for it," Red declared as he stood up and grabbed hold of one of two the pails of water.

The sight of her approaching husband, made Kitty's eyes widened. "Red, honey, put down the bucket of water."

"What bucket of water?" he asked, then pretending he'd just realized what he was holding he raised the container even higher. "Oh, you mean this bucket of water?"

Her arms were held out in front of her, the hose still clutched in her right hand, as she cautiously stepped backwards and away from him. She could read her husband and knew what he had planned would not end well for her or her trademark curls. "Red Forman, if you dunk that bucket of water over me, you'll be ruining a seventy-five-dollar hairdo."

"Seventy-five dollars?!" Red repeated and despite his outrage, he actually lowered his weapon a tad.

Kitty was aware of the risk when she revealed to Red how much it cost to have her done but she was also aware of how much of a penny pincher her husband could be and knew he wouldn't be too keen on the idea of spending another seventy-five dollars from this pay period's budget to get her hair styled a second time.

Slowly, she nodded her head. "That's right. And you'll have to pay another seventy-five dollars to get it fixed."

Red drew in a deep breath. "Well, Kitty, you know what they say, hairdos might be expensive, but payback is the real bit…"

Before he could finish the word, Kitty sprayed him again which caused Red to strike back with the bucket of water. With the water pressure from the hose keeping him at a distance, he didn't dunk it over her head and instead tossed the water out at her, managing to splash water on her blouse and capri pants as wells as dampening some of the curls on her head.

"Red!" she squealed when the water showered her.

She held down the nozzle, sending more water flying through the air and towards her husband. Ducking down from the direction of the spraying water, Red reached out to grab another bucket of water but the one he got was empty. They hadn't filled up the second bucket yet and from the look on his face, Kitty could see he'd realized he was out of ammunition.

But Red Forman was not a quitter. He was a fighter with or without any kind of ammunition. And though he was still close to the ground, Kitty was sure that he was forming some kind of plan.

Kitty released the handle which put a halt to the water flow and allowed Red to stand tall again. Kitty watched him carefully, she wasn't sure what he would do next until she spotted that smirk and impish gleam in his eyes that told her everything he was thinking.

In the next moment Kitty sped off water hose in hand, with Red chasing her from behind, his own arms stretched out in attempt to snatch the hose from her. Red chased her around the car several times, the water Kitty continued to spray at him did little to slow him down and everything to make them laugh.

Finally, Red was close enough to capture Kitty, creeping up from behind and wrapping his arms around her waist, which earned him a laugh filled shrieks as well as the prized garden hose. Kitty squealed and tried to run away but Red kept his right arm wrapped firmly around her waist while his left arm held the hose he was spraying her with.

Red held the spraying hose up high above his head so that even when Kitty tried to steal it back she wouldn't be able to reach it.

His laughter and her gleeful squeals mixed with the sounds of the running water and they could probably be heard down the street, but both were having too much of a good time to care.

At last, Kitty managed to get the hose away from Red by using her foot to step on the hose and yank it out of his grasp. Unfortunately, the garden hose didn't fall back into Kitty's hands and instead had fallen onto the wet pavement of their driveway.

She made a dash for it but Red was even quicker.

Much to Kitty's surprise though, instead of reaching out for the hose, Red reached out for her. He locked his fingers around her wrist and pulled her back to him, causing her to crash her chest into his with such force that it startled them both.

They stood there panting and trying to catch their breath from all of their previous running and laughing. They stared deep into each other's eyes, while their bodies stayed pressed closely together. Their clothes may have been soaked and cold but with how close they were pressed against together, Kitty could feel a source of coming from beneath the wet material that covered Red's upper body.

It was a warmth that she welcomed, even more so when she felt the warmness wrap around her as Red slipped his arms across her hips. He gave her a smirk, accompanied by a faint chuckle but all Kitty wanted to do was kiss that smirk off his face.

"Ahem!"

The sound made Red and Kitty separate like two caught teenagers and they turned towards the back porch of their home to find that they had been caught, ironically by two genuine teenagers. Steven and Jackie who, Kitty couldn't help noticing, Steven has been spending a lot of time with this past summer.

Steven crossed his arms over his chest, "Wanna share what exactly's going on here?"

"Uh, we were just," Red cleared his throat nervously. "Washing the corvette."

"Washing the corvette?" repeated Steven, not sounding very convinced, he turned to the small girl beside him. "I don't know, you buying this, Jackie?"

As Jackie shook her head, Kitty realized she had copied Steven's stance. "Sorry, Mr. Forman, but for someone who loves their car as much as you do, the corvette looks pretty dirty."

"Whole thing looks pretty dirty to me," Steven remarked, his smirk not going unnoticed by anyone.

Kitty felt her cheeks flush and when she lifted a hand to hide her warm cheeks, she caught sight of the sharp glare Red was sending toward the still smirking Steven and giggling Jackie.

"Well, that…That's my fault," she spoke up before her husband had the chance to try to scare the kids off. "I offered to help him wash the corvette and I wasn't the greatest helper."

"Damn hose got away from us," Red muttered and a smile flickered onto Kitty's lips as she looked over her shoulder at him.

She thought it was sweet of him to sort of take some of the blame off her and place it onto the hose that remained discarded on the ground. And Red didn't even seem to care about Jackie's comment on the car still being dirty, that made Kitty even happier. Maybe he didn't really love the car more than he loved her, and if his claim about loving them equally was the same, Kitty thought of an idea that was sure to get her back into the number one spot in her husband's heart.

"You know, Red, honey, I think we should go upstairs and get out of these wet clothes," Kitty said, rising her eyebrows suggestively, until she remembered the kids that were standing out of her view behind her. "So that we don't catch a cold."

Instantly Red nodded his head, making it clear he'd understood her hidden message. "Good thinking."

Kitty pressed her smiling lips closely together and began to head into the house with Red following close behind her. They held back from running off, at least until they were sure they were alone, but their wet shoes squished and squashed as they powerwalked the path to their home.

"Summer colds can be very hard to get over," Kitty told the pair of teens as she and Red passed them.

"Red, man, what about the corvette?" Hyde called out causing Red to stop in his tracks. "Aren't you gonna finish washin' it?"

Red looked back over at the car and for a moment Kitty worried that he would decide to finish the wash before joining her.

"I'll get to it later," Red answered in a way that could have meant later today or later in the week. "Besides, the thing's just gonna end up getting dirty all over again. Come on, Kitty, let's go."

Another giggle left Kitty's lips as Red grabbed her hand, taking the lead, as they briskly made their way through the kitchen before disappearing into the living room.

Back on the porch, Hyde shook his head as the swinging kitchen door allowed a glimpse of his adopted parents scurrying in the living room and towards the stairs that would lead them upstairs, undoubtedly to their bedroom. "Man, don't know what's worse. Forman missin' out on a moment like that would've really freaked him out or us having to walk in and witness it."

"I don't know, Steven, it was kind of cute," admitted Jackie as she shrugged her shoulders. "You know in the gross old people love kind of way. Of course, it would have been way better if the car were being washed by two young, hot people. Like us!"

Hyde broke out into laughter that Jackie did not join in on.

"What's so funny?" she wanted to know, her arms refolding themselves in front of her chest.

When Hyde saw her big brown eyes staring up at her, eyebrows lifted in a waiting impatiently kind of way, the strength of his laughter faded but he couldn't yet wipe away his amused smirk.

"Nothin'," answered Hyde, but the look she gave told him his one worded reply wouldn't be enough. "It's just, the thought of you cleanin's pretty freakin' hilarious."

Jackie's hand found their way to her hips. "I can clean things, Steven."

"Jackie, man, we're not talking 'bout your makeup brushes here, we're talkin' bout a car."

"I can clean a car, Steven," she firmly declared without batting an eye. "And don't forget, Mr. Forman taught me how to fix a car too. I might even know more about cars than you do."

A confused frown formed on Hyde's forehead as Jackie beamed before him.

"What?"

"But my point it," Jackie continued, ignoring his request for clarification, and walking onto the driveway where The Formans had left behind the needed carwash supplies. "I can clean a car. Last summer the cheer squad hosted a carwash bash and we made over one hundred dollars," she shared this information proudly while retrieving the water hose off the ground. "So what do you say to that?"

Hyde smirked. "I say, I'll go get the El Camino, you go get your cheerleader uniform."

"You pig!" she declared, but Hyde was sure he heard a giggle in her words just before she sent a spray of water right at his chest.

 **The End**

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 _ **Author's Note:**_ _So what did you think? Yay? Nay? A little of both? Too fluffy? Not fluffy enough? Be sure to let me know in a review!_

 _Hope you all enjoyed this fic, sorry it was mostly RK but like I said I wanted some RK fluff and since I'd reread and reread all the other fics it was up to me to write something new so I could read that lol Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer vacation!_

 _Until next time, thanks for reading, hope you liked, please review and lemme know what you think, take care, and have a nice day!_


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